ments and come prepared for class. It doesn't come

ments and come prepared for class. It doesn't come naturally.

2. Don't use children as guinea pigs by using untested educational fads: Teach phonics, not whole language.

Rappahannock County schools should teach children to read and write using the proven phonics method. It is well-documented that Whole Language training doesn't work by itself. Phonics does.

3. Set a goal that at least 90 percent of classroom time will be used for academic subjects.

You would be amazed at how little is spent on academic subjects during the school day. Some people estimate that only 40 percent of school time nationwide is spent on academics.

4. Don't write off students. Insist that every student be trained to attend college.

Virtually every Rappahannock student is capable of attending and graduating from college. It is in the best, personal economic interest of all students that they choose a path toward college.

Nearly half of the top 20 percent of income earners graduate from college. In 1993, median family income of households headed by someone with a professional degree was $87,666. It dropped to $51,480 for an undergraduate degree, $28,700 for a high school diploma, and $16,067 for high school dropouts.

Teachers who send the signal that "you're not college material" are crippling children academically and economically for the rest of their lives. If. you expect mediocrity, you'll get it. If you expect the best, you'll be pleasantly surprised more often than not.

5. Teach students how to study for success.

Too many Rappahannock graduates go to college and never graduate because they aren't prepared for the heavy workload. My guess is that 75 percent to 90 percent of Rappahannock students who are admitted to college never graduate.

The sad truth is that many of them had it too easy in high school.